@randomuser492 USC does not wait-list. Those being rejected will receive a letter via USPS regular mail and also be able to see the same when the admissions portals update on the 24th.
Saying my prayers on this one.
Iām nervous, but I also am prepared to get a rejection. Good luck to everyone!
Donāt think like that! It never works out when people have that mentality
Unfortunately, rejection does come along in life. Itās what you do next that matters most. Steven Spielberg desperately wanted to attend USC SCAā¦ so much so that he tried three times to gain admission. He was rejected all three times. And now there is a building bearing his name within the SCA complex. Bryan Singer tried and was rejected by USC and SCA. He tried a second time and got into USC but again not into SCA. He then succeeded as an internal transfer on his third try. Persistence can also pay off.
Many have faced rejection to their dream schools. In my day, for meā¦ it was Harvardā¦ and Harvard saw it differently. Harvard also rejected Dr. Harold Varmus twice. He simply went on to win a Nobel Prize in Medicine. Harvard also rejected Warren Buffet. They surely would like a do-over on that one. Every year around this time, it is important to remember that rejections need not control our lives. And with the way that things have evolvedā¦ with the Common Application making it far too common for high school seniors to apply to 10+, 15+ or even 20+ schools, those rejections are bound to add up. My older daughter was rejected by 12 out of 17 in 2014. But these rejection letters are not true assessments of student aptitude or ability or the quality of an application. They are simply the natural evolution of a cruel #s game. USC could clearly admit tens of thousands of quality applicants this year. They are instead stuck with the arduous, unwelcome and nearly impossible task of only picking 7K out of a field of 70K. They will even have to reluctantly disappoint 90% of all legacy applicants.
As Warren Buffet says in the article linked below: āThe truth is that everything that has happened in my lifeā¦that I thought was a crushing defeat at the time, has turned out for the better. A temporary defeat is not a permanent one. In the end it can be an opportunity.ā
To all of you active on CC or just following along without postingā¦ good wishes and the best of luck getting in. If you do not get into USC, hopefully you will find your place at another great option. But clearly some will face disappointment. Some will not gain admission into their dream school. I wish it could be otherwise.
Hereās a link to an excellent article on the subject of those who went on to great success after facing such a similar set-back as aspirational high school seniors aiming for that dream school scenarioā¦
https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704211704575139891390595962
Good Luck. Just 3 days away nowā¦
@WWWard Iāve been reading your posts for a while and I want to thank you for them - but particularly this last one. I probably should have asked your permission first (Iām really sorry), but I just now copied it to send to a friend whose daughter is going through a terrible week, having been rejected by all her favorite schools so far. Although it is hard for students going through the process right now to not tie these rejections to their self worth and to not feel that their whole lives might be ruined - you have perfectly encapsulated how ultimately, these rejections may make them stronger and better. Thank you again.
Nice @WWWard. One of your top ten. And you have way more than ten in your top ten. 
Youāre welcome, @mollygrrrl Yesā¦ by all meansā¦ share away.
Thanks, @CADREAMIN
Sorry, not sure if you saw, but USC admissions updated their page saying the status on the portal would be up at 5 PM Eastern Time on the 23rd
@catdog222 i think you meant 5pm PST
Thanks, @catdog222 Yepā¦ excellent. They have made it official. Per USC Admissions:
First-Year Applicants: Admission decisions will be mailed on March 21. Decisions will be available online March 23 at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time in the USC Applicant Portal.
Soā¦ to Recap for the applicants waiting: the mail-out of admissions packages, sent via USPS Priority Mail, has been confirmed by USC as occurring on March 21st, with portal updates for all applicants on March 23rd at 5pm Pacific. You can project your likely delivery window via the following linkā¦ https://www.usps.com/priority-mail/map/ Simply use 90007 as the originating zip code. Be forewarned however that USPS is far from 100% reliable, and they do too often miss those delivery windows. The portal updates on the 24th will be the definitive answer. Rejection letters arrive via regular mail laterā¦ usually received after the portals update - unless you live close enough to USC. While you can of course try Informed Delivery via USPS, as it has worked for some, USC does not enable tracking and historically very few of those actually getting the admission packets were able to gain that same-day advanced notice. The vast majority who have had Informed Delivery, including my own family, were not able to see this particular type of package en route. But there is always a chance. Of course, this out-dated notification method which relies on the U.S. Postal Service is very āOld Schoolā and designed to provide an unique āMailbox Momentā for those admitted to USC. And it probably is so for 80%+ of all admitted applicants. But many also learn via the portal updates firstā¦ as was the case in 2017 for my younger daughter.
Best of luck to all those waiting for good news beginning with the packages roll-out on March 21stā¦
I just checked, the USC admissions website says 5pm PST, which would be 8pm EST
Hi @WWWard --do you happen to know when the merit scholarship notifications will be emailed and/or updated on the portal?
Gotta give them props for stepping it up. Understanding that Sunday is no mail for most, and by 5:00pm PST everyone in 2 day will have gotten their package - they figured, why not move up the portal update?!
Thumbs up USC for this change and not doing as in years past, and making kids miss a night of sleep during an already stressful time!
Super excited about a 5pm PST portal update.
Lol 5pm PST is the minute I get off my shift from work that day.
Nbd just gonna possibly find out my fate in a food-stained work uniformā¦???
@HandMan Per @CADREAMIN ā¦ Scholarship decisions typically come the day or day before packages are mailed, so you could be looking at Wednesday this week. Maybe earlier, but shouldnāt be later than that. Of course, they are in charge.Your portal will update. Someone posts on here right away, so we should all know when it happens as some will be portal checking non stop next week, and see it the minute it is up.
@WWWard if I live in Denver, CO, should I get my decision before Saturdayās portal update in the mail if itās an acceptance?
@01pabs You can project your likely delivery window via the following linkā¦ https://www.usps.com/priority-mail/map/ Simply use 90007 as the originating zip code
Denver should get it Saturday. A large majority of people will get it Saturday. My guess is (only old-timer speculation here) is they want good news spreading out there quick. Thinking they are working round the clock to get them on the truck earlier on the 21st so they get to as many as possible on second day.
Scholarship decisions should be soon - very excited to hear good news from future Trojans.